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Garrett McNamara: Prepare For The Worst But Expect The Best | E68 · In Search Of Excellence

• 0:00
  Randall Kaplan: The wave is big your can't get up to the wave is, is finished. What's the?
• 0:02
  Randall Kaplan: What's the thought process? How long do you have to hold your breath for? How do you not panic? And how much fear Do you have when that's actually happening? Every big wave is so different in every big way, pounding at every spot is so different. You can have a
• 0:25
  Garrett McNamara: 80 foot wave and as array and you fall right in the wrong spot, like the worst spot possible. And somehow the lip lands on you and kind of pushes you off the bat.
• 0:38
  Garrett McNamara: Normally, on a big wave, and the lip lands on you or you, you fall. It's supervising at first.
• 0:52
  Randall Kaplan: Thanks for listening to part two of my amazing conversation with legendary surfer GARRETT MCNAMARA who owns a world record for the largest wave ever surfed at 100 feet tall. If you haven't yet listened to part one of my amazing conversation with Garrett. Be sure to check that one out. First, the waves get bigger and bigger. And at some point, no one had ever heard of the sport. And then as the wave got bigger and bigger, I remember seeing on TV the nightly news someone sir 40 feet and then 50 feet and it was kind of like a little speck on a big wave you can hardly see on the news and then became a little more popular. And then 60 minutes ran something where you're featured. Anderson Cooper, describe big wave surfing, cycling. It's like you're cruising down the side of a skyscraper but the skyscrapers collapsing on you. And then he said he's never met anybody like you. Can you tell us what big wave surfing is?
• 1:50
  Garrett McNamara: What big wave surfing is?
• 1:51
  Randall Kaplan: Yeah. What is big wave surfing for the people listening and in watching who don't know?
• 1:57
  Garrett McNamara: Well, Anderson describes it pretty well.
• 2:01
  Garrett McNamara: Trying to copy Mimi's hilarious, yeah, la Anderson is a good friend. I really, really like him a lot. And we've stayed in touch, or we've done three different shows together. Yeah, I love that guy.
• 2:17
  Garrett McNamara: The crazy thing is, he wasn't even afraid when we're on the Jetski. And I'm and we're going through these places that I he made me go through a place that I would not go through. He called me he's like, we're going out. We're gonna go around the rock. And he's like, he's like, go through there. I'm like, no, no, we don't go through there when it's been like that. He's what what are you chicken? Like?
• 2:36
  Garrett McNamara: Call me Chad. So we went through
• 2:40
  Randall Kaplan: a cameraman. I felt I felt bad for your cameraman. And some of that it's something that episode.
• 2:46
  Garrett McNamara: Yeah, we talked about fear. And he said, I said, I'm not really afraid of big waves anymore. And he's like, Yeah, I'm, what about you, you're always in these crazy life and dust spots. And he's like, you get sensitized. You totally get sensitized. And yeah, he's not really afraid in the situation to get himself in.
• 3:03
  Garrett McNamara: He likes to and then Nicole, interviews him say, Okay, we'll do the review. As long as you let us interview you for our show. We knew something was gonna happen someday. And she's she's all right. So what what do you think your life purpose is?
• 3:21
  Garrett McNamara: Nursing I need on my life purpose. My life purpose. My life purpose. Ah, he took a triple take. And then he's like, Oh, to shed light on situations that need attention and to bring awareness to what's going on.
• 3:44
  Garrett McNamara: Oh, right now. But um, what is big wave surfing? Well, everybody's big wave is different. Like some people have three foot shorebreak is a big wave. And it can be intimidating and powerful. Other people, it's a six foot wave other people, the 10 foot wave or other people, there's no limit, or they haven't found one. There's two different types of big wave surfing, there's traditional big wave surfing where we paddle out with a surfboard and get ourselves in the right spot and then turn around and paddle as hard as we can to try and catch this massive moving force of moving water and try and get down it and then turn at the bottom and try and make the way and that's where it all started.
• 4:38
  Garrett McNamara: And you know, started back in the day with no leashes and really, really terrible function, not very functional boards. And then nowadays, we have really good boards, but the only the boards didn't change too much, but they're definitely functional. There's functionals they can be for the size they have to be to catch the wave.
• 5:05
  Garrett McNamara: But then we got the toe surfing, which is a new sport. It's relatively new 1994. So it involves a PWC, a wave runner, a jetski of personal watercraft.
• 5:19
  Garrett McNamara: They're called personal watercraft, the Yamaha Kawasaki C two, and PwC is the name and then we have a tow rope just like a water ski or wakeboarding tow rope that connects to the back of the wave runner. And then you have a handle at the end of that tow rope that the surfer holds on to. And then he's on a normally traditional surfing, we have a big wave out a 10 foot surfboard, would tow in surfing, we ride a six foot surfboard. And we have straps built into the surfboard, and different materials are used for different conditions. But it's basically a six foot surfboard no matter what size the waves are. And the weights vary. And the shapes don't vary too much.
• 6:07
  Garrett McNamara: But some guys are experimenting here and there. But it all really comes back to the same shape that we designed with Mercedes Benz, we made the old Dimmuborgir Mercedes, and most people are using pretty much the same shape and pretty much the same technology. But we get towed out of the water and honor on the six foot surfboard with our feet shoved into the foot straps, and the rope pulls us up out of the water. So now we're on top of the water skimming, and then the wave driver will drive you towards the wave. And you choose you see a big set combinator choose first wave, second wave, third wave, you take you to jetski drives towards the desired wave and this set and and gets you up to the wave speed. And then right before it breaks, he pulls away turns out to the right or turns out to the left, and you hold the rope as long as you can to get the whip to get the speed you need to enter the wave. And then you let go of the rope and you're flying down the wave and you you're carving back to the left to the right to the left to the right looking to where you want to go. What you want to achieve on the wave is every wave is different. And everything that you want to do on on every wave is different.
• 7:22
  Garrett McNamara: Depending on what type of wave you're surfing, and if it's a hollow wave, you're wanting to get in the barrel and you let go the rope and you're you're waiting and waiting to set or running. And we can all run away from the way we can all get away from the wave and be safe. Or you can stay as deep as you can and try and get in the barrel are trying to do a big maneuver a big snapper big aerial. For me, I just focus on getting barreled. So you let go you're you're you're fading to the left and then you're gonna go to the right and then the lips coming over. And then if everything goes right, you get right under the lip. And can we remember one way where I got right under the lip and then the lip kind of missed it hit me smacked me in the face Paw Paw Paw. Right as I went on, there's three little smacks. And so I'm going and then right when it hit me, I'm blind now and I'm coming into the barrel, I can feel that I'm in the barrel, but I can't see.
• 8:21
  Garrett McNamara: And I'm feeling like I'm getting really deep and I'm thinking to myself, gonna make it gonna make it you know, I'm coming up the face of the wave as the barrels going golfing, I'm gone, I'm disappeared in the cylinder. And then I'm starting to feel the the compression it the way when it barrels it turns into a compression chamber and I start feeling it sucking backwards, like a backtrack. And then it kind of goes sign it and I'm sliding up the wall. And I feel like I'm about to fall off and I'm featuring the straps. And in this hurricane force, compression fire hose spit comes from behind. And right as I'm about to fall, the wind, the force of the water and the wind that the compression chamber made, picks me up literally off the face of the way where I'm about to fall, which correctly straightens me out and then throws me out right in front of the way behind. After the split.
• 9:23
  Garrett McNamara: The split comes out the way that I land. And I come out and I'm just saying, oh my god, oh my god. Thank you God it was yeah, that was still the most memorable ride I've ever had and the most the best feeling I've ever gotten big wave surfing, spiritual, definitely spiritual.
• 9:46
  Garrett McNamara: Just the sensation was over is just so it wasn't overwhelming.
• 9:52
  Garrett McNamara: It was just all the training, all the sacrifice all the planning all the goals setting And it all came together on that one way.
• 10:03
  Randall Kaplan: Most people can't imagine surfing something as tall as Niagara Falls. And when I was doing my research on the podcast, I heard you're going speeds of 5060 miles an hour down almost a straight face. What's it like? Because one one little slip of and I've seen some of these wipeouts I think 10 people have died in the history of big wave surfing. You had lost a surfer in January of this year. It's extremely dangerous. Make it we're gonna talk about the danger in a few minutes, but 5060 miles an hour.
• 10:35
  Randall Kaplan: That's insane.
• 10:39
  Garrett McNamara: Yeah, you know, it's, it's a
• 10:41
  Randall Kaplan: six foot board 50 5060 miles an hour, that doesn't even seem possible.
• 10:47
  Garrett McNamara: It depends on the conditions if there's no wind, and it's classy and smooth, and there's no chop coming out from the RIP coming out of the channel. It's like cutting butter with a hot knife and you can pretty much do anything you want. And it's so beautiful and so smooth and so peaceful and, and spiritual and just like dancing with God on this beautiful face that's just so perfect and smooth. And then that's how to Cortes banks, which is going to be in season three. And then you got somewhere like Jaws, or even harder NAS array. It's these massive chops coming up the face and you're just hitting them like It's like icy moguls and they're six feet tall and yours full boom, boom and you're just trying to keep your feet in the strap and you're trying to keep the board on the water and trying to set an edge so you can turn and make the wave and it's it's who Yeah, your brain is getting round all your bodies round your whole being is getting rattled and you're just doing your best and then new new. All the surfers nowadays there's a there's a new chart new charge of amazing surfers and Nazarene right now that are just pushing the envelope and everybody's chi and Lucas Chi Chi Lani and Lukas Chombo kind of led the charge of the new way of surfing big waves with flips and aerials and, and now there's a bunch of really good guys.
• 12:29
  Garrett McNamara: Right behind him, actually, right there with them.
• 12:34
  Randall Kaplan: Chiron is amazing. I like to have him on my show. So when we're over, I'm going to ask you for an intro.
• 12:40
  Randall Kaplan: But let's talk about Naza Ray, because it was a place most people in the world had never heard of unless you are local.
• 12:48
  Randall Kaplan: Can you tell us how this whole thing happened and Laird Hamilton's email, and then how long it took you to actually go out and have a look.
• 12:58
  Garrett McNamara: In 2005, I got an email from a guy named Dino who was a local body boarder and he ran a sports program for the municipality for for the mayor, he was under the mayor running the sports program
• 13:14
  Randall Kaplan: in Azeri, Portugal, just for those who don't know and as Ray is a really it's a seafront town. In Portugal, there's a huge would you call it a castle or lighthouse on the edge of
• 13:26
  Garrett McNamara: a lighthouse, a beautiful Lighthouse right on the edge of the cliff. And he was living in that fishing village for his whole life and he would go up on the cliff with his father and his young boy and he he says that he imagined people surfing it way back then and then he had the dream of somebody surfing it and then they were trying to bring attention to the town somehow.
• 13:47
  Garrett McNamara: And so they emailed me and and well, first they emailed LAIRD HAMILTON says he told me this about five years ago. He didn't tell me this until about five years ago, first emailed LAIRD HAMILTON and they didn't get a reply. Then they emailed because Laird, the man I mean, who wouldn't email LAIRD HAMILTON first and then Carlos Vernay because he was basically the man in Brazil. And international he was he was winning events back then. And he was pushing the envelope everywhere. And no reply at Danny's I was at third choice, the third string and he said I replied in like minutes he couldn't believe what he in Danny was scared. He's like, holy shit, this guy replied. And he might come and I don't want him to die and now I feel responsible. But maybe he was too worried. So we removed for five years and nothing happened really it was just back and forth. And so for the bodyboarder he's he's definitely well educated and and he's very strategic. And it is all because of him that we ended up there have to give Dino the credit.
• 15:07
  Randall Kaplan: But it took you a while to get out there. But
• 15:12
  Garrett McNamara: it wasn't really going to happen until my wife saw the email, she saw the thread. She was going through my emails and says You get me organized. And then you know what's in it. Some are some guys want me to come to Portugal and see if their waves any good. And it's big and good. And if it is can help promote their town and she's like, should we go? And I said, Well, you want to go and she's like, Yeah, why not so. So we went in one month later, we were in Portugal, after she got the email chain.
• 15:40
  Randall Kaplan: Tell us how a big wave actually forms in the canyons under the water. And what happens when the caves or the canyons collapsing underwater that causes these 100 foot waves?
• 15:57
  Garrett McNamara: Well, you have the low pressure system, ideally, coming out of like Nova Scotia, somewhere on the East Coast, preferably up higher when it comes out of like below New York, Florida, and they come straight across there to west.
• 16:19
  Garrett McNamara: And they don't reach full potential. But if they're Northwest coming down from like Ireland, Iceland, Ireland, Nova Scotia, we need a straight northwest swell for this water reach full potential, the swell is created by the low pressure preferably up there. And the strength of the wind. And the duration of that strength of wind determines what size swell arrive on the beach. There's a few other variables in between that snow pressure if there's something going on in between, but usually there's just one low pressure, sometimes there's a high pressure which you want the high pressure on the land, and even a little bit into the ocean to stop the wind from blowing up, keep it either deadwind or offshore when that swell arrives. So you got this strong wind blowing Northwest for a long period of time, creates these undulations on the surface of the ocean. And then they get bigger and bigger and bigger.
• 17:34
  Garrett McNamara: And then as they reach Portugal, they're received by shelf, which is about 30 to 60 feet deep max.
• 17:42
  Garrett McNamara: And then right on the edge of the shelf is a canyon, that's three times the size of the Gant Grand Canyon 25 miles long and right at the shoreline where the way it breaks, it's 1000 feet deep in the trench, and 60 feet deep here 30 To 60 feet. So this and it's shaped like a funnel.
• 18:12
  Garrett McNamara: So the swell comes down the canyon full force, nothing stopping it to reach full potential. And then it hits the same exact wall comes across the shelf and gets chopped by the shelf slows down loses height and and so then the same exists a weird phenomenon the same exact swell that should hit the same time now meets at different times comes down the canyon really fast comes across this the shelf slow and it and turns towards the swell that's now coming across the shelf. So it creates two different swells.
• 18:54
  Garrett McNamara: Same swell, turning into two different swells going two different directions, causing a wedge. And then sometimes that wedge cancels out if they if they miss just right this huge swell this huge wedge will be coming in and somehow it misses.
• 19:13
  Garrett McNamara: And it cancels itself and it looked like it was gonna be the biggest wave ever saw doesn't even break and then the one behind doesn't look as big but it hits just right and causes this wedge effect of TP which generates the tallest tallest waves in the world because it's basically a rogue wave on the shore but the classifier rogue wave is is when two different swells in the middle of the ocean come from two different directions and meet up and cause this thing to just boom jump up and take out a boat. This is on the shore from the same swell but the same fall getting turned out itself and and timing difference. though it could be the second wave in the set is hitting the third wave of the canyon.
• 20:58
  Randall Kaplan: So you talked about kind of the wave you think is going to be the big wave doesn't turn out to be the big wave, the one behind it may be the big wave people's careers depend on the size of the wave.
• 21:07
  Randall Kaplan: So is there any way to judge when you're back there? Are you just kind of getting lucky? I mean, we're going to talk about the team and the lookout and the binoculars in a minute. But when when you're out there, you're making a judgment call. You're looking around, you're waiting on the wave. So how does that all happen? What's the thought process there, I'm going to take this wave or I'm going to take that wave.
• 21:28
  Garrett McNamara: Well, first and foremost, we have preferably Nicole on the lighthouse, watching doing safety and helping us choose to go north or south first week, second week, third peak, and helping us to choose which first second third wave. And but at the end of the day, it's up to us to really choose where we want to go, what we want to do and what we're focusing on that day. And the funny thing about Naza Ray is it's not always the big outside wave, a lot of times it's the inside Wave that magnifies and intensifies and gets taller than any of the other waves. So it's sometimes those insiders that nobody's going for just become these mutant monsters that just pop up out of nowhere and get 7080 feet tall when everybody's sitting out the back waiting for the set. Firstly, that you have to call on the lighthouse, orchestrating you have a safety you have the ski driving you into the way you have a safety ski behind that and and preferably on the really big days, you have a second Safety ski backup safety.
• 22:37
  Randall Kaplan: So you're a runner, professional runner, you're doing 100 yard dash, you can kind of feel like I had a good run, you're a skier, you know, you're someone got a professional skier going down the hill, you know, you had a good run. There's a lot of talk in terms of, did you surf, 100 foot wave? Did you not surf? 100 foot wave, it's hard to measure.
• 22:58
  Randall Kaplan: Can you actually tell once you're up there, how big the wave is, or you need to get feedback? When you get back to say, Wow, that was a big one.
• 23:08
  Randall Kaplan: Because it really is a little bit marginal when you're up there, right? You got 7580 8590 and then 90 Plus,
• 23:17
  Garrett McNamara: yeah, for me, I've no idea how big the waves are, when I'm writing them, you can kind of feel it, you can feel how massive it is. And you when that when the wave, the sun is here, and you're coming down and you're in the sun, you're in the light, and then the wave comes up and lurches over and takes out the sun. That's when you know it's massive. And how big they actually are. Some of them feel huge, and they're they're more flat and just massive mass of water. And other ones are taller and not quite as thick and stand up taller. And so Naza it's really hard to tell how big they are. And yeah, as far as measuring them it's most controversial subjective, is not scientific at all. Purely ego or politically measured, either you're either measuring with Eagle or with politics and usually both.
• 24:34
  Randall Kaplan: You talk about Kelly Slater, some of the world's LAIRD HAMILTON, LAIRD HAMILTON and the individual sports. That is an individual sport for the most part, right?
• 24:44
  Randall Kaplan: They get away with it right if they're doing their tricks, big wave surfing is a team sport you couldn't do without a team. Talk to us about your team. You already talked about Nicole, we're going to talk about it more later. But how critical is having a team what's the team and what two people actually do besides Nicole who's up there in the White House on a walkie talkie giving you advice on wind and waves
• 25:07
  Garrett McNamara: while you're you're only as good as your team pretty much everything in life and their first teammate should be your wife the one you spend most of your time with hopefully you all your planning and goal setting and or you know as long as you're working together with your your wife or your partner, then things are usually going in a good way and you're usually happy these big picture stuff but then the team runs deep I mean you got your safety drivers you got your trainers you got well you got your safety drivers. You got your first responder on the beach, you got your ambulance, your firemen, you're the lifeguards, and then now there's a first responder vehicle that's on the beach with everything. To bring somebody back the most sophisticated equipment now is in Nazareth ready to help people. So you got that then you have your trainers, your dieticians, your then then you've been nowadays you've got your Instagram, you got to either do it yourself or usually the guys that are really successful, have their own personal videographer that they work with to create stuff together, and do the post usually themself or together with the person. So you're making sure all your goals are met, and everything's going in a good way or most people aren't doing things in a good way.
• 26:41
  Garrett McNamara: They're just doing things to be cool or make money. But if you're doing it right, you're doing it in a good way to try and be inspiring and try and make a difference. And then there's all the partners and sponsors and there's so much more so much more. I mean, lawyers for advisors, and, and, and yeah, sponsors and partners,
• 27:10
  Randall Kaplan: kind of training.
• 27:11
  Garrett McNamara: The main thing is, it's all about who you surround yourself with. It's all about joining forces with people who have the same desires, same goals, same dreams. And it's really important to me to know, besides the thing we're doing together, and besides the thing that we're focusing on, what is your personal goal? What is your personal dreams? How can I help you achieve what you personally want, besides this collective group that we have here? So that way I can always help the person get where they want to get if there's anything that I can do I can I know what, that I know what, or how or when to help
• 27:58
  Randall Kaplan: you talk about training and diet what how does a big wave surfer train and what's the diet I assume you're burning just a tremendous amount of calories when you're out there.
• 28:09
  Garrett McNamara: Training can be as as as route has focused as you want or as open these days.
• 28:17
  Garrett McNamara: Everybody takes it very serious back in the day, party all night, go surf, no problem, whatever. Nowadays, it's focused. Most people aren't drinking, most people aren't doing drugs. Most people are training three to six or seven days a week. Most people are on a really clean program for what their intakes are. They're evaluating what helps them run at full potential what helps what will enable them to run at full potential and have longevity if they want to stay in the game? The people that do that, exceed mightily the people that don't just kind of exist for a little while and then they're gone. On unecessary just a freak and very well liked and loved
• 29:17
  Randall Kaplan: what's the physical training that you do?
• 29:19
  Randall Kaplan: Are you running five miles a day? are you lifting weights?
• 29:22
  Randall Kaplan: Are you surfing 30 foot waves every day and just trying to maintain some kind of regularity because you can't go out and surf 10 big waves a day can you
• 29:32
  Garrett McNamara: I was never into running really I would run I would hike up a hill maybe run a little but I did like running downhill I don't know for something I really liked to do for short distance not for longer, but it's just jarring.
• 29:46
  Garrett McNamara: The the joints and the hip and the back and the vertebrae I really liked to do but downhill like on trails, but I never like long distance. I do love a good park a good grass field like a football field or preferably at Grassfield and doing hold my breath exercises while doing the loops. That's what I used to do back in the day that was my main underwater training was hold my breath exercises at a field and cave diving and rock running during the summer and that was pretty much it. My my I did a lot of weights and yoga. And but the main thing that kept me in the water was surfing, getting pounded. The more you get pounded, the more you can get pounded. And the more stamina you have the same exact type of situation you're gonna put yourself in you just do it over and over and over and over and then it's like second nature as they got older nowadays Oh, training looks like I love my assault bike to get the cardio gone real quick. I love the rower and I love the rower and the assault bike are priceless.
• 31:05
  Garrett McNamara: And then there's, you know, different circuit training. I do love my weights, I do love my machines, but the bands are like gold when you get older bands are just priceless. And I have a very amazing trainer that I work with three times a week. And then when I'm on a good one I trained the other six days, I have two other three days then I rest one. Ideally, I'm working out six days a week, three with my trainer three on my own. And then I'm doing weights, bands and cross training. And I like to do circuit training three days and weight training for three days with machines and free weights. And then I'm gonna be in Portugal. The whole month of July. I'll probably put a little running. I'll do this.
• 32:12
  Garrett McNamara: I'll bike for sure. Do the rower. Do the weights and the machines. I'm probably going to do a bit of running. I'll be at Costa Terra in in compart. And we have a really good gym there we have a good trainer but I have everything that I that I my program I already have down to a science but it's good to have somebody spot to make sure you're not you're you're staying symmetrical. There's no mirrors at the facility. So it's nice to have somebody double check that diet is super important. As you get older, it's so important to put super in the few in the tank.
• 32:51
  Randall Kaplan: People. Let's just stop here for a quick second. You're 55 years old, how old are you now? Part of a 55 you're 55 for the viewers and listeners if you're listening, you can't see Garrett. He's 55 years old. And he's still doing this and all the training. He just puts things in perspective.
• 33:11
  Randall Kaplan: So tell us about the data I'm sorry to interrupt, but I wanted people to really know how old you are as you continue to talk about the training the fact that you're still doing it if 55 is amazing,
• 33:22
  Garrett McNamara: the diet is the most challenging of all, and that will keep you in the game or not. The training can keep you in but your body will start to break down if you keep putting garbage in it. And I love my Aussies I love my desserts so it's that's the most challenging thing for me is not to go get an Aussie with the kids or not to go get an ice cream with the kids the breads and the starches I love them as well but I can do without them and that the ice creams and Aussies I can do without it but it's definitely challenging for me in a perfect world I'm and and what to eat what to actually put in your body what is your superfood What is your super What is your what's going to help you run at full potential and peak performance all day long and not get tired and everybody's body is so different and everybody's circumstance what they were raised on what their forefathers were raised on but mainly what you were raised on that's what remain the matters and what your body likes is everybody's different and you got to experiment I believe after doing so much research and so many different diets in so many different programs. That number one water Water is life if you drink a lot of water all day every day you're ahead of the game that's your oil that's going to keep the pistons going up and down you know oil car break no water body breaks down then plant based is definitely not definitely there's so many studies saying don't eat kale and don't eat this and your body you can fry your body camp I'm so I'm a little confused right now. I was 100% plant based and I wasn't eating any and we were even raw the best I've ever felt was raw but I was I was making a point to drink more water never drank so maybe it was the water.
• 35:37
  Garrett McNamara: But the raw when I was eating raw for about a year that was the best ever felt vegan was amazing. But then there's some steak for a good steak. Where do you get your iron? Where do you get protein? And if but it That's where you get it. If you're getting it from the store, and it's not free range organic, grass fed, then you're basically poisoning yourself.
• 36:03
  Garrett McNamara: You're eating hormones, you're eating pesticide, you're eating antibiotics, and years just prolong suicide basically.
• 36:15
  Garrett McNamara: Luckily, our bodies are so resilient and adapt so quickly to all this garbage we put in them. I don't understand how you got this crazy drug addicts who are doing whatever drugs all their whole life, and somehow they quit doing drugs and all of a sudden, they're fine. What the hell? How's that work? And then you have other people who were smoke a cigar and drink jack for their whole life. And they're 95. And they're still out there in the garden. So it's your genes matter? I think about or maybe it's the mindset, there's so many variables that it's the PETA studies are not accurate, because there's too many variables in everybody's life.
• 37:02
  Garrett McNamara: Where they live. Is there a good clean drinking water? Is there an electrical pole? Is the air clean? Are they happy? Are they depressed? Are they angry? I mean, I feel like it's 50% your mind and 50% what you put in it, but it can go 9010 either direction. I do love a good state grass fed free range organic. I love fish. I never eat chicken because it's the dirtiest all the foul. It's the dirtiest, most disgusting, produced but if it's farm, right, if it's if it's free range organic, then chicken can be good to Turkey, whatever I use, try find out organic Turkey, those things are so skinny. We had one last Thanksgiving and my wife has a wallet. Our mother in Portugal, we bring it to Turkey and she's used to these fat turkeys. And she's like, the turkeys sick I can get this for you guys. No good. And she cooked it and it came and it was it was but it still tastes really good.
• 38:07
  Randall Kaplan: Alright, so you talked about getting pounded.
• 38:10
  Randall Kaplan: And you talked about holding your breath for a long time as part of the training. I've seen some of these falls. I've seen some of your falls. I've seen people rushing out in the jetski I've seen people thinking he died. And we've seen people in your show die. So what is the what is the feeling when you fall in your beneath that water and the power is tremendous, as you explained on the show? And how long are you holding your breath for? How do you not panic? And how hold? How long do you have to hold your breath for before you know you're going to come up for air? And how do you deal with the fear of dying.
• 38:48
  Garrett McNamara: The fact of the matter is that we had never lost a toe surfer toe surfing in the history of toe surfing.
• 38:59
  Garrett McNamara: Until last year and as array. I thought for sure we were going to lose somebody. The next year, we almost lost my thought every year. We didn't lose somebody I could not believe it because the way the waves break and where they're breaking and there are some zones that you can't really rescue people and I thought we were gonna lose somebody right out of the gate. And we every year I just like scratching my head going wow another year while we made it. I didn't even stop thinking about it. I stopped thinking that we were going to lose somebody. When we finally lost somebody. It was very unfortunate. He didn't have adequate safety protect safety gear for Naza Ray for any other spot Nazarov mad Jaws he wasn't adequate either. And he was a local from Brazilian but he was one of the first guys to paddle at jaws and he was an animal. He was a beast he can handle. He's handled what most men cannot handle. He did it without a life jacket. He was one of the first guys out there before the Jets we before. We started putting floatation on he was out there Jaws having the monsters that most everybody cannot survive and somehow he made it. He went to NASA Ray and he served that morning. I don't know the facts.
• 40:30
  Garrett McNamara: I don't know if he is out of shape. He looked out of shape. I heard that he ate a huge lunch and he wanted to go back out. He just put a thin life jacket on he didn't put a thick one and look it wasn't big so he didn't think much of it. You needed he needed inflation or a massive flotation veste for that day, and he got just held underwater too long now, I believe that it was oxygen deprivation and he drowned. But I don't know the autopsy was not released, it could have been a stroke. It could have been heart attack. I don't know if he was vaccinated or not. I don't know. Yeah, there's that. So we might not lost him to toe surfing, he might have got a heart attack or a stroke. That was the first death we've ever had. While somebody was toe surfing. So big wave surfing we've had many throughout the years. I mean, that we know about in our big news, not too many. But as far as a competent BIG WAVE SURFER drowning, not too many. But there's been some foof what was what where were we going with the question, shoot, I'm going to longer
• 41:54
  Randall Kaplan: and we're going, you're on this huge wave, you fall off the board, the wave is going to push you away underwater. And if you don't hold your breath, you're gonna die for sure. So what's the feeling? Like? How far deep Are you going? And do you realize at some point, this wave is still pushing me pushing me pushing me down the wave is big, your can't get up to the wave is, is finished. What's the what's the thought process? How long do you have to hold your breath for?
• 42:22
  Randall Kaplan: How do you not panic, and how much fear Do you have when that's actually happening?
• 42:30
  Garrett McNamara: Every big wave is so different. And every big wave pounding at every spot is so different. You can have at foot wave and as array and you fall right in the wrong spot, like the worst spot possible.
• 42:45
  Garrett McNamara: And somehow the lip lands on you and kind of pushes you out the back. Normally, on a big wave and the lip lands on you or you you fall it's super violent at first, it just hits you so hard, and it feels like it's can rip you apart literally. And there has been people that have their limbs ripped off their body. But the only thing that held them together was the skin, everything else all the ligaments, all the bones, all the tendons, everything is wrapped. But the skin holds it has nobody's got them actually taken off everything but the skin. While you're getting ready for the pounding, you prepare ahead of time you breathe up while you're out there, you oxygenate you hyper oxygenate you calm your heart down, you enter the wave, you're confident you're strong, you have those as much oxygen as you need to survive you you fall you get a violent round and you've been violated you feel like your arms ripped off, you get a stinger in your arm just thinking or your back or the main place you get to stingers in arms. And it feels like they're broken, but it is a stinger from the hit.
• 44:06
  Garrett McNamara: And then if you can get yourself into a ball and you can kind of pull your legs in without using too much energies preferred. And but then you relax and you calm down. And once the violence is over, then you just got to go with it. Because you're not going to come up until the heart aerated water passes, no matter how much flotation you have on until that aerated water goes by and you're now in hard water you will not come up. And so once the airway water goes by, and then you're down 1050 60, whatever, however deep it takes you, if you're down deep, a lot of times your ears get weak.
• 44:56
  Garrett McNamara: It's like the craziest pressure and there's no time to equalize.
• 45:00
  Garrett McNamara: Normally, when you're down super deep, you're in the air rate of water so there's not as much pressure but once that aerated water is gone, then the pressure comes in. And then you kind of swim up nice and calm. Yeah, you've already you've already you have your floatation on you may have already pulled if you pull you're in the area of water coming up pretty fast. You kind of just torpedo up with a couple of strokes. And you got to get up right before that next wave come to get you a lot of times you're just getting your lips out and then room. One more rolls over you and then normally when you're in the Whitewater is not as violent. Just the initial pounding of the lip and where the wave is a compression chamber that it's super violent.
• 45:49
  Garrett McNamara: Sometimes even though I want to find it Usually it just rolls over you and rocks you and takes you and then slowly but surely spits you out the back where you get in a hard water and you come up again. And you get your lips out again. And hopefully another one's not rolling over you. But sometimes you can get two or three without barely getting a breath. And then you come up and you get a little more, get a couple of breaths before the next one. So I'm gonna I've had like 20 waves before, get to the shore or get rescued at least 20
• 46:23
  Randall Kaplan: You've had to be rescued 20 times
• 46:25
  Garrett McNamara: No, no direction, probably 1000 times 1000s of times, I've had about 20 Wave hold downs, like continuous consecutive waves in a row one way then come up from one air. Well, another way a couple of breaths, another wave coming grass, another wave cover another way. No, no, no, no. And then you're starting to bounce off the rocks. And then they come in rescue, or nazara. They either have rescued you you're crawling up the sand on your own. So when you get pounded, the main thing is to relax and enjoy it. The Undurraga riders can be more fun than the actual rides on the surfboard, there you have zero control you have, you're at the mercy of the ocean that take you as long as it want or spins you out whenever it wants, it will rip you apart or let you go nice and gentle. You have to just enjoy it. It is a choice, you can choose to enjoy it.
• 47:24
  Randall Kaplan: I think that's very interesting. I think if I was 60 feet underwater with I don't know, 1000s of pounds of water on top of me and I couldn't come up from here and I think I'm gonna die. I'm not sure I would enjoy that very much. But let me ask you this.
• 47:35
  Randall Kaplan: How many times if you if you if you prepared
• 47:41
  Garrett McNamara: properly and you have a good team, you know you're not going to die. So so you can enjoy it so you can enjoy it.
• 47:48
  Randall Kaplan: How many times have you almost died? big wave surfing. 00. So when I saw you in the hospital after a terrible injury and you had months of recuperation, it didn't look like you may not walk again.
• 48:02
  Randall Kaplan: You're not going to call that you almost died. You're just going to call that a serious injury.
• 48:09
  Garrett McNamara: The woman I my foot the concussion
• 48:11
  Randall Kaplan: Yeah. And you know you're laying up in the hospital. I
• 48:14
  Garrett McNamara: mean, if I hit that if I hit the roof harder I could totally died. Yeah, but But it's like saying you almost got somebody pregnant. You did or you didn't?
• 48:26
  Randall Kaplan: Do you ever have fear going out surfing?
• 48:31
  Garrett McNamara: Fear going out. Not too often. I used to have it until about 2007 Till that glacier experience and then I didn't have it forever. And now I'm letting it come back to Houston and train my mom but I just serve Cortes I wasn't afraid I just served. The Andes fold here is like 60 feet plus wasn't afraid. But I'll definitely more patient and definitely not as hungry more patient more calculated, more focus on making sure that I'm going to make my wave if I'm going to choose to ride at getting in the spot to make the wave if I'm going to actually attempt to ride something, not just going whatever put me on the wave do I want to try and get barreled? No, it put me on the wave in the perfect spot or on the shoulder. Now the shoulder isn't a very desired place to be because it's it's very unfulfilling, first and foremost, but it's where it's more choppy and bumpy. So you want to be in the perfect spot, you want to be in the apex right on the line on the perfect line, you don't. If you want to get the barrel, you want to be behind the line deep. And that's where I used to always want to be now I just want to be on the line on the perfect line. I want to either catch it in a perfect spot with my own two arms. Or have the driver put me in the perfect spot and train perfectly. mid face not at the top of the wave not at the bottom on the way. Not at the shoulder. Not deep, mid fair, you gotta jetski you can drive good. You put me in the middle of the wave right at the beginning of the wave.
• 50:19
  Randall Kaplan: So what's your advice to people on how to conquer the fear
• 50:23
  Garrett McNamara: face them? You got to face them to conquer them. But not everybody wants to face their fears and not everybody wants to conquer their fears. People get comfortable.
• 50:34
  Garrett McNamara: Most of us in this world get comfortable where we are and we just want to stay where we're comfortable. And that's respectable. I mean, it really holds a lot of us back from achieving our goals and dreams and we just live this simple life and do the same Both things and, and, but never really live our purpose or what we love. And we ended up just I mean, for lack, kinda like, I don't want to say slaves, but we ended up just working for the weekend and working for the man. And it's a very weird world we have right now. Very interesting. I like that. The world is so interesting. And there's so many interesting people and there's so many interesting jobs and it's crazy, where it's going and where we are right now. It's, it's, it's unimaginable. But everything that we see on the TV or the movies now, somehow it's coming to light. A total recall is here now, I never thought there would ever be a total recall here. It's here. We're live in Total Recall. Right now.
• 51:53
  Garrett McNamara: It's just the beginning. It's crazy. where's it gonna go? I don't know. It's so. So interesting. We wanted to go in a good way, though, I do have hope that the technology can help us do the right things.
• 52:04
  Garrett McNamara: Because we know what the right things are. We know how to do it. But it's the it's us, the consumers and the capitalists who want to make money on us that want to do things just to make money. So it's a crazy world we're in.
• 52:24
  Randall Kaplan: Going back to the fear question, you said in the past, that the way to conquer your fears, they just keep doing scarier and scary things that they see until you go where you're comfortable or uncomfortable. How scary Should we go to conquer our fear to the point where we're risking injury or death,
• 52:44
  Garrett McNamara: to conquer your fears, make a plan to face them and make a very realistic plan on how to go about how to prepare, first and foremost, and then surround yourself with the right people ask the right questions, then you make your plan, you make your goal. And then you make your plan. Make sure it's all realistic. If you really want to succeed, actually, if you put a lot of time into it, and you really focus on it, it'll be very fulfilling. There'll be short lived, if you have a selfless component to that whole experience. It'll be very long lived. It'll keep going.
• 53:22
  Randall Kaplan: One of my favorite topics, and something that I'm known for in my world.
• 53:25
  Randall Kaplan: And the mentoring I do in the coaching that I do is something I call extreme preparation, which is a completely different kinds of preparation that most people know about. Or think about, I have a book coming out called extreme preparation next year. And I'm excited for people to learn some of the techniques.
• 53:42
  Randall Kaplan: In a big way survey, most people don't understand the amount of preparation that goes in there.
• 53:49
  Randall Kaplan: So maybe you can tell us what extreme preparation means in the world of big wave surfing and quick start about mapping out waves, months in advance and planning trips and wind speeds and teams and all kinds of things. So can you tell us what extreme preparation means in the world of big wave surfing and how it's led to your success?
• 54:09
  Garrett McNamara: Why extreme preparation? First is the safety plans. And figuring out all the challenges that you may have, once you're in the water, wherever location, all the locations have different challenges. So you got to figure out that figure out the locations you want to serve.
• 54:27
  Garrett McNamara: Figure out the challenges you might face and figure out solution for all those challenges. That's extreme preparation, and you have to re up be able to face the unknown challenges with a very calm and focused approach and stay calm.
• 54:47
  Garrett McNamara: Then you got to set up your locations. And there's a very important aspect of who you're going to surround yourself with who's who's who's going to have the skis, who you're going to actually partner with when you show up are you going to bring all your own equipment are you going to set everything up there. So you either set everything up at the location and have your own your team that you like working with that's, that's ideal. Then you got the spots where you're going to show up and they have everything and you're going to work with some other crew. And that's when you got to be more of you have to be very, very direct but also be more not so rigidly attached to how you do things but do your best to work with them. And make sure the most important things are addressed and implemented and everything else you kind of work But the way they like to do it, there are certain things that you just can't band and other things you can, you can.
• 55:56
  Garrett McNamara: So that's preparation the people spot, then there's the training and the training, I think is most important, physically.
• 56:09
  Garrett McNamara: Because if you're physically if you feel you physically put the right time in and took the right approach for your training and your eating, then you're mentally there, you're you're mentally focus, you feel mentally strong and ready, because you're physically ready.
• 56:32
  Garrett McNamara: And then, you know, if you're just gonna go there, just for fun, then you don't have to consider bringing a camera crew or, or documenting it. And that's beautiful. That's the way you should be going there and not to document it. Now, if the cameras come along, then you got to make sure their part there.
• 56:50
  Garrett McNamara: They know the protocols, they know the the safety plans. And yeah, really about planning ahead, planning for the worst, having a solution for Worst case scenario, but expect the best and only visualize and see the best happening, see the outcome, see the result you want, for the best. But see the once you start seeing the bad, the negative, that's when it goes bad. So but you got to plan for the worst and see the best.
• 57:26
  Randall Kaplan: How important is visualizing our outcomes, in terms of accomplishing our dreams,
• 57:32
  Garrett McNamara: I like to call it manifesting. And it's one of the most important things in life. Our minds are so powerful, and we can do anything we want.
• 57:39
  Garrett McNamara: Every single person in the world can actually be do or become anything they want with the right plan. But it has to be real. If you're starting out as a child, you can pretty much be anything, no matter where you're starting. But if you're starting out as an adult, you might want to have more realistic plan of what you really want to do. And the main thing is figuring out what you love what you're passionate about, you might have to go back to when you were three and remember what your passions are so conditioned.
• 58:14
  Garrett McNamara: Now, we don't even know what we love. We just love what whatever we're conditioned to love. So yeah, everything's possible.
• 58:23
  Randall Kaplan: Let's talk about philanthropy for two minutes.
• 58:25
  Randall Kaplan: Tell us about the McNamara Foundation, how people can get involved and what your goals there are,
• 58:30
  Garrett McNamara: our goals are to share a meaningful nature experiences with first and foremost underprivileged youth.
• 58:42
  Garrett McNamara: They're the future they are, they need it more than anybody.
• 58:48
  Garrett McNamara: And they're the people who are going to be the future of the world. So we can get them to fall in love with nature, through surfing or through hiking or through whatever activity the day allows that we take them out. We take them out once a week. It's mainly surf therapy. And then we give them coping skills. And then we get goal setting and we share what made them where I started eating out of trash cans and where I got with goal setting. And so they and I take them surfing and we empower them through surfing, they surf, then they hear the story. And then they like wow, if he started there, I can do it. So then they're really empowered. And their goal is just to let them know that everything's possible, but also empower stewards of the Earth at the same time so we can have this earth to live on. So otherwise, future not looking so good. And then we have a chap that's in Nazarene we have we work with the orphans of Nazareth and a bunch of refugees from all over. All over there.
• 59:48
  Garrett McNamara: They all live in Nazarene now.
• 59:54
  Garrett McNamara: And then here in Hawaii, there is a sex trafficking rehabilitation center called Pearl Haven, and we do to serve therapy program for them. There is 600 100,000 sec traffic teams in the United States that we know about. We're probably more but there's only 600 beds in the rehab facilities facilities nationwide. 30 of the beds are in Hawaii, right at the beach where I learned how to surf. So we that now that's what they look forward to. Every weekend is the surf therapy program and they're coming out of their shell they're there. Yeah, there's this is crazy. These girls never trusted a man in their life the only thing they think of a man And here's somebody who's going to come have set for them and do whatever they want with them. So there was this graduation going down and and the camp director was a man, which is kind of a touchy, kind of weird and it's hard. Like, I'm like, I can't really go there. They don't want and they're not. It's the right kind of person. Yes, you can't.
• 1:01:12
  Garrett McNamara: So the guy who was running the program was there doing the graduation with the girls. And the girl looks up to him and said, you're the first man that I could ever feel safe around.
• 1:01:24
  Garrett McNamara: Thank you so much. Crazy. So it's a McNamara Foundation. And we have to chapter we were hoping to do things worldwide.
• 1:01:36
  Garrett McNamara: Right now. We're we are kind of worldwide nazzer and Hawaii. And yeah, McNamara foundation waves of life.
• 1:01:46
  Randall Kaplan: You're doing great. Thanks. Let's end this with one question. What's the one thing you wish you told your 21 year old self? Or would tell your 21 year old self? If you could go back in time?
• 1:02:01
  Garrett McNamara: study harder in school? Read more books?
• 1:02:05
  Randall Kaplan: What's the one question you wish I'd asked you but didn't ask you?
• 1:02:09
  Garrett McNamara: Oh, no, I got you stumped me. Oh, how did you stay in the game for so long?
• 1:02:20
  Garrett McNamara: And how do you still have a career in surfing? At 55?
• 1:02:27
  Randall Kaplan: Pretend like I asked you that question. We got a little bit of it. Because I did want people to know you're 55 years old, I did want to talk about the training and the diet.
• 1:02:36
  Randall Kaplan: But what is the secret to staying
• 1:02:38
  Garrett McNamara: about figuring out what your niche is in what ever you do, because everybody can do some something better than everybody else. Because we all do in our own special way.
• 1:02:50
  Garrett McNamara: You might not think you're as good as that guitar player who is the best in the world. But you're you do your little special thing with the guitar that he can't and you do it better. Just just like a little.
• 1:03:00
  Garrett McNamara: So yeah, we all have a unique gift, and just figure out what your niche is and hone in on it.
• 1:03:10
  Garrett McNamara: And now you can actually market it. Instagram, which is weird, but it's true. You can be whoever you want.
• 1:03:19
  Randall Kaplan: cared. I'm really grateful for your being here today. I'm a huge fan. As I said, I love this series. I knew nothing about big wave surfing.
• 1:03:24
  Randall Kaplan: Before that. I encourage everyone to watch season one. I think you're in the middle of season two right now. So thanks for being on my show. I'm really grateful for you being here.
• 1:03:33
  Garrett McNamara: Thank you, you know, Bob Hurley. He's the owner of Hurley, I asked him for advice. He's a very good friend and I go to him once or once a year once every other year to get advice. And he said number one thing, whatever you got it whatever you're gonna do, make sure you're reaching full potential or don't do it.
• 1:03:56
  Randall Kaplan: That's the goal of In Search of Excellence to inspire and motivate people to be the best they can be 1% better every day. 1% better every day. I appreciate you and I look forward to staying in touch with you. Thanks very much. All right. Thank you